Started a New Project

[M Tornichio]

Things are finally starting to settle down around here, so I started another project rifle. It is going to be based off the Holston Rifle that Wallace Gusler wrote about in muzzle blast a few years ago. The trigger guard is the one that is open. I don't plan on building it exactly the same, actually I am going to make a rifle that is inspired by it. I had inlet the barrel a couple of weekends ago and have the ramrod hole drilled now. the stock is black walnut and the mounts will be iron like the original. The barrel that I have to make it is probably on the small side, but it is what I have at the moment. The barrel is 38" long and 40 cal.
Here are a couple of shots of the start.The stock as some figure in the butt, I can't wait to see the finished rifle.


This the buttplate rough filed to shape

[RobertS]

Very nice, I can't wait to see the finished rifle, either.  Do you use mild steel on the buttplates?  What thickness?  Thanks so much!

[rich pierce]

I too want to build one based on the Holston rifle.  Nice job on the buttpiece, looking forward to your guard.

[M Tornichio]

Hi Robert, I just used mild steel for this butt plate. It was 1/8" when I started, which is probably over kill. Thicker material does allow for more choices when filing out the plate for different design ideas.

Rich, I think the triggerguard is going to be slightly tricky in that it looks to be all 1 piece. I am sure I can forge one, but trying to entire thing flowing with out and sharp bends might be a little tricky.
I also am doing the buttplate diffent in that I am not have the extension pull inward to be mounted directly into the wood.
This rifle gets me excited when I think of building it.
I will keep everyone up todate as I go along.
I really enjoy seeing other people's rifle pictures when they are under progess of being built.
I hope people like me posting unfinished rifles in progress.
Marc

[Ian Pratt]

Marc, man that's my favorite rifle of all time,  looks like you have a real good start, on the blank it looks like you have the pitch of the heel layed out real similar to the original, would be a shame not to do that!
  I have one based on that same rifle underway myself  - maybe if we both have them at the CLA show in Lexington this Summer we ought to have a shooting match down in the mall
 One very interesting feature of that rifle that was not covered in Wallace's fine article - for such a large bore, the rifling is a suprisingly fast twist by "modern" black powder standards. This along with some of the other decidedly Germanic features seems to offer evidence that the gunsmith may have been a German immigrant. The barrel itself seems to generally follow the profile of German barrels of the time, yet stretched over a longer length.
  If you (or anybody else reading this) is ever interested in building one with a barrel like the original, I took measurements off it every three inches and  took notes on specific changes in profile and gave this to Ed Rayl. 

[M Tornichio]

Ian I would be interestin in the measurements. My rifle barrel I am sure is much too skinny at the breech, but It still might be interesting in that I think I can still make the rifle feel like a slightly scaled down version. Who know might mess thing up.
I am definitely going to push hard to finish this rifle by the CLA show. I am planning on having a table set up again, so a shooting match in the mall would be fun.
Was this the rifle that I missed at the rifle show last fall that you were talking about?
I am really bummed now if I missed my chance to see it in real life. I kind of remember seeing it out of the corner of my eye thinking that may I thought the open trigger guard was kind of rare on an american gun, there is one over on that table.
Marc

[Ian Pratt]

Marc,it is in a private collection. I'll dig out the dimensions on the barrel and e mail them to you

[rich pierce]

I think the guard will be pretty easy since it's one piece.  I'd cut out a template in flexible plastic sheeting, etc, forge the piece to the correct widths then bend the curves in.  That's how I do buttplates, anyway, and it might work on a simple guard like this one.